The French Guy from New Jersey: Serge Lescouarnec alias Serge the Concierge shares information on Food, Wine, Travel and Life TidBits.
He also runs 'New Jersey Concierges'

August 12, 2014

A family member is about to spend a lenghty period of time in Liege province of Belgium and needs to travel from St Vith to Huy and St Vith to Brussels in first days of his stays.

I wanted to find out what best travel options where and discovered Rome2rio which offered for both trips not just a map but also length of trip, travel options and respective costs depending on wether you drive, take a cab, hop on a bus or ride the train or a combination of these options.

For Taxi and Train from St Vith to Brussels, Rome2rio estimates total travel time to 2h 57 and cost of $97 each way starting with $60 for 11,9 miles taxi ride from St Vith to Gouvy (25 minutes) where you can catch train to Liege-Guillemins (1h and 16 minutes, hourly service) for $15 then Liege-Guillemins to Bruxelles-Central (56 minutes, service every 30 minutes) for $20.

In comparison, driving is estimated to take 1hour and 57 minutes and cost $35.

If you are under 26, cost of train travel from Gouvy to Brussels can be brought down by purchasing a Go Pass 10 from Belgian Rail for 51 Euros.

Each trip even if you change train can be made with one of the 10 passes for a cost of 5.1 Euros.

In this case you would have to use one pass from Gouvy to Brussels and another one for return trip for a total cost of $13.63 instead of $70.

Some destinations like Brussels Airport require payment of Diabolo fee in addition to your Go Pass.

So far about 40 to 50 recipes have been updated to reflect this friendlier way.

We will add the rest as quickly as we can and hope to be done by September 1st, 2013.

Let us know how you like the change.

(* Illustration is photo from Panelle, Sicilian Fritters, Gluten Free recipe from The Country Cooking of Italy by Colman Andrews- Chronicle Books, Fall 2011- reproduced with permission of the publisher- all rights reserved- Photography by Hirsheimer and Hamilton)

May 17, 2013

Looking for a Sunday afternoon quiet actvity, graphically inclined and in New York, sign up for Edo Pop Stencil Workshop at Japan Society.

On the Menu

Gain an artist’s perspective on Edo Pop: The Graphic Impact of Japanese Prints with a highlights tour of the exhibition. Take inspiration from street artist AIKO’s stencil mural and woodblock print imagery to make your own stencil prints using watercolors and fine papers with master printmaker Roni Henning. No experience necessary. Limited class size.

Posh
pear fritters! Robust pears are just 'pearfect' with
rosemary scented sugar – make this in advance if you can,
you will find all sorts of uses for it. A little lager in the batter
really does improve the taste.

Serves 4–6

For
the poached pears

200g
caster sugar

1
bay leaf

1
vanilla pod, seeds scraped

1
whole unwaxed lemon

4
pears, peeled and cored

For
the BATTER

150g
plain flour

3
tbsp sugar

pinch
of sea salt

1
large egg

250ml
lager or ale

vegetable
oil, for frying

icing
sugar

For
the pear crème Anglaise

120ml
milk

100ml
single cream

2
egg yolks

10g
caster sugar

For
the rosemary sugar

2
sprigs of rosemary, dried, leaves
stripped

75g
caster sugar

Prepare the poaching liquid before preparing the pears as they
discolour.

Place the sugar, 150ml water, bay leaf, vanilla seeds and pod, bay
leaf and the juice and the lemon in a saucepan over a low heat and
bring to the boil for 2 minutes.

Cut each pear into 3–4 vertical slices about 1cm thick and add to
the cooking liquor. Place a circle of greaseproof paper (a cartouche)
on the top and poach until just tender (about 5–7 minutes). Remove the
pears from the liquor and leave to cool and drain on a rack or cloth.

In a medium bowl, combine the flour, sugar, a pinch of salt and
the egg. Whisk together and gradually add the lager or ale. Whisk until the
batter is smooth. Leave to rest for 10 minutes.

To make the rosemary sugar, blitz the rosemary and sugar together
in a blender. Store in an airtight container until required.

Heat the oil to 175ÅãC. Working in batches, dip a few slices of
poached pear into the batter, then carefully drop them into the oil. Fry until
golden on both sides (about 4 minutes).

Drain the pear beignets on absorbent paper and dust with rosemary sugar.

To make the pear creme Anglaise, place the poaching syrup from the pears, the milk and the cream in a saucepan and gently bring to
the boil.

In a separate bowl, whisk the egg yolks and sugar until pale. Pour
a little of the hot milk mixture into the egg mixture, then gradually pour
this back into the hot milk. Cook over a low heat, stirring continuously
until the custard thickens. Do not boil or the custard will curdle. Once
thickened, pass the custard through a fine sieve and serve with the pears.

(* Recipe from 'Full of Flavor' by Maria Elia- published by Kyle Books USA, April 2013- reproduced with permission- Photography by Jonathan Gregson)